By CLAYTON PARK

Northgate Mall owner Simon Property Group has been holding discussions with City officials in an effort to resolve a several month long impasse over the Indianapolis-based developer's plans to build a massive mixed-use center on a vacant asphalt-covered lot it owns south of the mall.

The Jet City Maven recently obtained a copy of a letter that Simon's vice president of development, Art Spellmeyer, sent on Aug. 18 to City Councilman Richard Conlin and Denna Cline, special assistant to Mayor Paul Schell.

In his letter, Spellmeyer outlines a point-by-point response to concerns expressed by Conlin and Cline in a previous letter regarding "opportunities to improve the Northgate Mall General Development Plan."

Simon's plans call for construction of a multi-screen movie theatre complex, a skybridge linking the new center with the mall, a hotel and multi-family residential units on the so-called South Parcel site.

Those plans have drawn fire from Citizens for a Liveable Northgate (CFLN), which argues Simon's plans for the South Parcel site does not fully comply with guidelines set forth in the Northgate General Development Plan, a City-approved neighborhood plan created by local citizens in the early '90s. The Northgate GDP calls for developers in the Northgate area to build projects that are pedestrian-friendly and community-enhancing.

A citizens group called the Thornton Creek Legal Defense Fund has also mounted a battle to persuade Simon to daylight a portion of Thornton Creek it claims was diverted into an underground culvert when the South Parcel was covered in asphalt several decades ago. While the Northgate GDP does not require the mall to daylight Thornton Creek, Legal Defense Fund members claim do so would restore the waterway to its natural state, which the group contends, was once a habitat for Chinook salmon. The group believes that qualifies the creek to be protected under the state's Endangered Species Act.

City Hearing Examiner Meredith Getches dealt setbacks to both Simon and the Legal Defense Fund when she ruled on June 28 that the developer's plans did not fully comply with the Northgate GDP, but also decreed that there appears to be no evidence that Thornton Creek ever ran through the South Parcel property.

Both Simon and the Legal Defense Fund have filed separate legal appeals to overturn Getches' ruling. Both groups have expressed disagreement with Getches' findings. But Simon, apparently, is not contend to leave the fate of its South Parcel project solely in the hands of the courts.

Spellmeyer recently met over lunch with CFLN members Jan Brucker, Barbara Maxwell and Cheryl Klinker, during which time he also gave them copies of the Aug. 18 letter he sent to Conlin and Cline.

The following are excerpts from that letter:

€ Accommodate Potential Branch Library and Community Center Building - "It seems the only real possibility (for a location for the City's proposed Northgate library branch) is the existing Bon Tire site," wrote Spellmeyer. "If we were able to take control of this (site), I would be willing to commit to keep this off the market for a reasonable period of time until the library location is decided..."

€ Accelerate and Expand Pedestrian Facility Improvements through North Lot - "We will immediately explore the implications of providing sidewalk and landscaping improvements along Northgate Way (east of Third Avenue) and Fifth Avenue (north of 105th Avenue) during Phase I," Spellmeyer wrote. He added however that "I am very concerned about having north-south pedestrian routes through the parking areas (of the mall) ... it is simply not a good idea for pedestrians to walk though the parking lot. Their purposes would be much better served by walking through the mall..."

€ Plan for Development of Retail Frontage along Major Pedestrian Streets - While Spellmeyer said his group is reviewing this matter, he added: "I can't imagine anyone would expect us to construct buildings that won't be leased at terms that would support the investment in the building and parking decks."

€ Develop the Proposed Pond as Usable Open Space - "I can only say that this is what we have been talking about for over a year."

€ Water Feature and Swale along 103rd - "I am not quite sure what a water feature means here. We can look at the swale. I know there will be concerns relative to maintenance during times when there is no water in the swale."

€ Develop Residential in Phase 1A - "This is likely to happen in some form. The issue will be whether or not the market can take 460 units at one time."

Spellmeyer's letter also noted that Simon has "already made major changes" to its Northgate Mall expansion plan during the public process. "We have spent over $400,000 and we have to resubmit (plans) and contend with a lawsuit ... We will work with many of your requests, however, there are real limits to what we can do, especially when Thornton Creek Legal Defense Fund has vowed to litigate, no matter what. We simply cannot give, give and give. While the neighborhood wants us to be fair with them, let's remember fairness works both ways..."

Spellmeyer added: "We will need a commitment from the neighborhood groups that if we move forward with the items noted above, they will support (Simon's mall expansion plan) and the individual projects and not take part in any further appeals or legal action ...

"Although we will work with many of your requests, we are also seeking closure to these issues and will not be able to accommodate additional requests for changes in the future.

"We believe our project, on balance, will provide great benefit to the neighborhood and region, and that other parties must take responsibility for addressing neighborhood issues which are beyond the scope of our project. We will continue to work with the City and the Community to make the Northgate Mall (expansion) something we can all be proud of."

Sincerely,

Simon Property Group

Arthur W. Spellmeyer III, Sr VP - Development